WorldWide Telescope

[w_d_w]

<p>I've been taking pictures with Microsoft's WorldWide Telescope from my PC lately. It has many different viewpoints available from planets to bare sky via telescope. I've taken several pictures over the past few nights, and plan to continue.</p><p>I wanted to mention this for the amateur. I've been wanting a telescope for a while, but have been falling short on funds. With this software, it's completely free to look at photos already taken, and compiled together, from one of two of Microsoft's telescopes. From there, my print-screen button is an easy way to paste into paint and save as a .jpeg picture.</p><p>I've been posting these pictures on my myspace, as I've said in other posts. Anyone interested can find them at myspace.com/confusionovercomes under the photo album Larger than Life. The photos themselves have to be editted if you want to get the WorldWide telescope program out of the picture, but I've not gone to those measures.</p><p>Hope this helps someone.</p><p>edit - The page for that software is www.worldwidetelescope.org. It's hosted, as I said, by Microsoft. I haven't seen many updates lately, but the downloadable content is extensive with full exposure galactic tours by scientists, etc. It even has support features to control your own telescope with correct drivers if you have one. I'm sure many of you know about this, but the ones that don't now do. </p><p>Will </p>

 

[adrenalynn]

<p>Why not just look at Hubble photos?</p><p>Personally, if I'm not freezing my ___ off, I'm not observing - I'm just looking at random photos.&nbsp; </p><p>But that's just me...</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[w_d_w]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Why not just look at Hubble photos?Personally, if I'm not freezing my ___ off, I'm not observing - I'm just looking at random photos.&nbsp; But that's just me... <br /> Posted by adrenalynn</DIV></p><p>I'll give you that. Feeling the universe from the outside while you look at it can't be beat. But, at the same time, that freezing is limiting you to what you can see from that given point on Earth. I've got compiled pictures of the entire sky all at once from every angle of Earth's surface. I suppose you're right, Hubble's pictures will give the same effect, but what piece of software compiles those pictures to give you a real-time image of the sky around us, not above us? Well, what free software? </p>

 

[adrenalynn]

You have a point.&nbsp; When I run out of observation targets, I'll get a larger scope or a darker sky.&nbsp; When I *really* run out of observation targets in my sky, I'll be several tens of thousands of years old, and I'll address it then. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[w_d_w]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>You have a point.&nbsp; When I run out of observation targets, I'll get a larger scope or a darker sky.&nbsp; When I *really* run out of observation targets in my sky, I'll be several tens of thousands of years old, and I'll address it then. <br /> Posted by adrenalynn</DIV></p><p>Touche, my friend... touche. </p>

 

[adrenalynn]

&nbsp; (All good natured ribbing, really.&nbsp; Sometimes it's hard to tell I'm not being a ...&nbsp; Hard enough IRL, harder yet on the Intarwebthang.) <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[MeteorWayne]

Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Why not just look at Hubble photos?Personally, if I'm not freezing my ___ off, I'm not observing - I'm just looking at random photos.&nbsp; But that's just me... <br />Posted by adrenalynn</DIV><br /><br />Now if you had real guts, you'd be freezing your ___ off watching meteors, which is a unique observation in time and space. A meteor shower is like a box o' chocolates... <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div>

 

[adrenalynn]

Well, to some extent I do.&nbsp; During showers, certainly, but whilst navigating the sky, or imaging the sky, I spend relatively little time with my eye pressed to the lens and far more looking at the sky and hoping that 5min long exposure doesn't have a plane flying through it and that the settings are reasonably correct, sharply focused, and that the light pollution doesn't blow it out.&nbsp; That leaves one with a lot of "staring into space" time. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[w_d_w]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Now if you had real guts, you'd be freezing your ___ off watching meteors, which is a unique observation in time and space. A meteor shower is like a box o' chocolates... <br /> Posted by MeteorWayne</DIV></p><p>Yes, and I am the blessed one in 09.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Quads is supposed to be best from the eastern North American continent at 2AM till 7AM on Jan. 3rd.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Bet you guys can't guess where I am. </p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Will </p>

 

[adrenalynn]

I think Wayne's right in there too.&nbsp; I'm on the Other Coast. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[w_d_w]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>I think Wayne's right in there too.&nbsp; I'm on the Other Coast. <br /> Posted by adrenalynn</DIV></p><p>Actually, I just looked again and it seems I was mistaken. It's not the eastern coast but the western coast according to: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28314648/</p><p>Either way, the western coast should see 60-120 meteors per minute. We should still have a good show on our side, too.</p><p>Will </p>

 

[adrenalynn]

I hope that's per hour rather than per minute, right? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[w_d_w]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>I hope that's per hour rather than per minute, right? <br /> Posted by adrenalynn</DIV></p><p>And this is me murdering a report.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Good call. </p>

 

[adrenalynn]

<p>Just a slip of the fingers. [shrug]&nbsp; Hardly note-worthy.&nbsp; No, 60/second, that'd be note-worthy! </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[w_d_w]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Just a slip of the fingers. [shrug]&nbsp; Hardly note-worthy.&nbsp; No, 60/second, that'd be note-worthy! <br /> Posted by adrenalynn</DIV></p><p>A slip of the fingers was when I said it was East coast when it was West... 60/second compared to 60/hour was me murdering a report. Lol.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Either way, the right information got out.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Will </p>

 

[w_d_w]

<p>I did forget to mention the different views of the sky available. They range from the FERMI to the Hipparcos Catalog, with lots of random ultraviolet, infrared, etc., views in between.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>There are different options of things to view from panorama's (even when we landed on the moon) of Mars landers and planets themselves. The downloadable content is limited right now, but this thing is chock full of guided tours, etc.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>For an amateur, it's worth the free download. Especially for one with no equipment of his own.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The software can be used for people who have telescopes with the correct drivers. </p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The part I like the most is that you can join communities online (I just started out with Astronomy magazine). Inside the software itself you can go the communities button and view tours by people within the community.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>I'd dare to say that, given enough popularity, this thing may one day actually be a WorldWide Telescope.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Will </p>